Veronica jumped onto Kevin's back as he ran them onto the field so they could lead their football team out, she loved that she had him on the squad with her, she only wished that Betty was out there with them and not on the stands alone.
After getting themselves into position, the Bulldogs started running out onto the field, through the path they created. Veronica felt the adrenaline coursing through her veins, the atmosphere of the crowd all screaming for the Bulldogs as they made their way out one by one. It was always such a thrill when she was cheering them on in the stands but she never imagined how amazing it would feel from the ground.
Veronica grinned happily when Reggie ran out blowing kisses to the cheering supporters in the stands, he had been talking about playing varsity football from the time she met him, she was so proud that he had made it and he was loving it.
The last two boys out were her brother and Archie, Riverdale high's stars, the main attraction. Veronica cheered louder with the rest of the crowd as her brother came running past them first, his arms out to touch the pompoms the Vixens were holding up.
Archie was right behind Jughead, running after him in a less dramatic way. Veronica turned her head to smile at him and he winked at her on her way out to her brother, making her blush, she didn't think anyone else saw that until she locked eyes with Kevin who wiggled his eyebrows at her and she rolled her eyes pulling him to follow the rest of the cheerleaders to the edge of the field to start their first routine.
Veronica was on a high, it was close to the end of the game and the Bulldogs had already won, it would take a miracle for the Eagles to win against them in the last 5 minutes of game play remaining.
"I didn't realize there was anything happening between you and the ginger haired stallion," Kevin hissed to her as he got ready to lift her onto his shoulders, she furrowed her brows and looked at him confused. "He's been glancing back at you so much, it's got Ginger fixing her hair after every move thinking he's looking at her."
"Maybe he is just looking at Ginger," Veronica said with a laugh playing off Kevin's observations. She had also noticed Archie looking back at the cheerleaders more often than usual, a couple of times she felt as if he was staring right at her but he could have been looking at anyone. "Or maybe he was looking at you."
"Please, I would know if Archie Andrews was looking at me," Kevin said grunting as he hoisted Veronica up onto his shoulders in unison with the other cheerleaders and gripped her legs so that she didn't slide off when she moved. "Okay, it's his free kick, Ginger is all the way on the other side of the line but he is going to look this way, at you."
"I think you need glasses," Veronica said with a laugh, waving her pompoms in the air and repeating what Cheryl had just said as the Bulldogs broke out of their huddle and Archie stepped up to the ball."
"Just watch V," Kevin said in a sing along voice. "3,2,1 ..."
Veronica said nothing, just watched as Archie turned back to his team and then lifted his gaze from them directly to her, she smiled encouragingly, showing him both her thumbs up and he nodded and blew out a breath before turning his attention back to the game and started to run.
"OMG he actually did it, what the hell V?" he asked and she yelped and gripped the sides of his head as he almost dropped her from his shoulders, his words were drowned by the cheers of the crowd as the ball sailed easily through the posts. Kevin bent down to let Veronica slide of his shoulders and then turned to her with his arms crossed. "Explain."
"We are cheerleaders, we cheer our football team, sometimes when they need encouragement they look to the cheerleaders to cheer them on ... Go Bulldogs," Veronica cheered making an over-dramatic arm gesture, Kevin scowled because he obviously didn't believe her. "Do you want to know who he's really looking at?" Veronica asked dropping the sarcasm and Kevin raised an eyebrow. "Look at who's on the stage behind us."
"Josie?" Kevin asked confused because Archie performed with her a few times but there was nothing between them and then face-palmed when he realized who she was talking about. "Val! Do you know what happened there?"
"Nope no clue, but Jug made it clear that Archie would jump at any chance with her if she asked," Veronica said grabbing his arm as Jughead went flying past them with the ball in one arm. "Oh, here we go, come on Jug."
Jughead passed the ball just as a player from the other team caught him around the waist and took them both down, Veronica cringed as she watched her brother sit up but her eyes were quickly torn away from him once she knew he wasn't hurt, to the player that he had passed to, Archie, who easily scored a touchdown ending the game.
"I love game nights being on the field instead of the stands makes everything... electric," Kevin said once he and Veronica had changed out of their sweaty cheerleading clothes and made their way back onto the field, feeding off the energy that everyone was still giving off as they celebrated the Bulldog's win and reaching out for Betty when she came barrelling down the stairs to them. "B! I wish you were down here with us."
"Me too, but I'm here, cheering on my favourite cheerleaders," she exclaimed hugging them and then peering looking out toward the field where the players were. "Where's Reg?"
"Somewhere in the sea of cheerleaders and adoring fans," Veronica laughed tilting her head up as well to see if she could spot him. "We're never getting him back now."
"Whoo, now that was a good game," Jughead said suddenly, popping up behind them and throwing an arm around his sister's shoulders and Veronica immediately pushed his arm off and cringed away from him.
"No, Jug, I've already changed and you're so sweaty," she complained stepping backward straight into Archie, who chuckled as he wrapped his arms around her, making her squirm her way out of his grip. "No, you're worse Archibald, why are you here and not with your groupies?" she asked annoyed, this being the only time she wished those girls kept her brother and Archie from her.
"We came to make sure that you're still in one piece and Bombshell didn't eat you alive," Jughead said, grinning at his sister who was smoothing out her clothes after successfully wiggling out of Archie's grasp. "Jason said she was in a terrible mood earlier, we were worried."
"I can hold my own, thank you very much," Veronica said with a roll of her eyes. "This isn't my first game, brother."
"And we are so proud," Jughead teased before turning to his sisters friends and giving them a lopsided grin making both Kevin and Betty melt and Veronica rolled her eyes, that was the reason he was here after the match, to check out her friends, or well friend, singular, with the way he was looking at Betty. "Did you enjoy the game?"
"Yes, you guys were amazing," Betty complimented and Kevin nodded along too star struck to say anything and Veronica shook her head at them, she shouldn't be surprised by this behaviour though as her best friends they were exposed to Jughead and Archie every time they went to her house and every time they would act the same way. "Congratulations."
"Why thank you," Jughead said giving them a little bow. "This is only the start of the season, just wait until everything gets more intense, this year we're bringing home the cup."
"Oh yeah, there's no way the Baxter High Ravens are beating us now," Archie agreed, happy with the strength of the team they had for this season.
"We're heading over to Pop's now, will you three be there?" Jughead asked directing his question to his sisters friends because he just assumed that she would, she loved being a part of the popular crowd.
"Of course we'll be there," Kevin said happily, he loved the fact that now that he was in a cheerleading outfit, invitations they never would have gotten the year before was now a normal thing. Betty and Veronica just shared an amused look with each other because he had clearly forgotten that they were planning on having a sleepover since Mrs Cooper wanted Betty home right away. "Betts you cannot say no, this time it is not negotiable."
"Why would she say no?" Jughead asked curiously and Betty just shook her head, the last couple games, while her friends were out with their teams, she was ordered home.
"Because her mother wouldn't agree," Veronica said dancing around Archie who was still needling her to which Kevin raised an eyebrow and tilted his head, he hadn't even noticed that Archie and Veronica were still standing much too close to each other, lost in their own world.
"But Polly will be there, I saw her leave with Jason already," Jughead said confused and Betty blushed and nodded, not wanting to explain that she was the girl that followed all the rules her mother set out for her. "It's just Pop's."
"And Mrs Cooper is just evil," Kevin quipped causing Betty to frown at him, which he missed because he was still staring at Veronica and Archie who had stopped flirting but where still standing much too close to each other for this to be just friends in Kevin's eyes. "Come on B, you can't say no to Pop's, especially not when the hottest football players are asking us to go."
"Yeah," Jughead said straightening up at the compliment and smirking, over-exaggerating his presence. "The hottest football player just requested your presence."
"Wait I didn't request anything," Archie teased and Jughead turned to him and punched his shoulder hard. "Jeez Jug, I'm getting abused by the Jones siblings tonight."
"You say stupid things, you get hit," Jughead said quirking an eyebrow looking eerily like Veronica when he did that.
"Jug's right though Betty," Archie said rolling his eyes at Jughead's smug face. "You should come to Pop's and blame it all on Polly, I'm sure she's itching for a new reason to defy your mother."
"That's true," Betty laughed, Archie was her neighbour and since he was friends with Polly, he and Jughead sometimes aided in sneaking Polly in and out of the Cooper house. "Okay, I'm in."
"Wonderful," Jughead exclaimed and then turned to his sister. "Do you need a ride?" he asked knowing that she wouldn't feel bad for demanding that he drive them if they were stranded.
"My car is here," Betty supplied helpfully holding up her car keys with a small smile.
"So you're free to take the groupies without your little sister tagging along," Veronica told Jughead who grinned back happily. "Where are they anyway? I expected them to be plastered to your side by now."
"They're probably still changing," Archie said with a shrug as if he didn't care either way.
"Yep, we need to get out of these clothes too, see you three at Pop's," Jughead said walking backward and waving to them, Archie tugged at Veronica's hair one last time before following his best friend.
"So dreamy," Betty sighed wistfully watching the boys leave.
"Yeah," Kevin said matching her dreamy tone and then snapping out of it and turning to Veronica. "What the hell was that?"
"What was what?" Veronica asked innocently and Betty frowned.
"I missed something," she said looking between them.
"Something is a'brewing between our little V and Archie Andrews," Kevin sang out rubbing his hands together and Betty looked at them intrigued, Veronica rolled her eyes and started walking toward the change rooms and parking lot, leaving them to follow her closely. "He kept looking back at her during the game and they were flirting like crazy a few seconds ago, although I wouldn't expect you to have noticed Archie trying to get his hands on her when Jughead was standing in front of you."
"He was looking at Val, she was on the stage behind me and that just now was him just trying to get on my nerves as usual," Veronica said, turning back to face them and stopping just outside the change rooms. Betty smiled knowingly because she was very aware of Veronica's crush on the redhead but she was pretty sure only she and Jughead's ex-girlfriend Toni were privy to exactly how in love Veronica was with Archie, for all of Jughead's attention, he missed the things right under his nose. "B, are you interested in my brother?"
"Well, I mean, I..." Betty stammered, her cheeks getting hot at the attention on her, not expecting Veronica to change the subject and ask her about Jughead.
"What our darling Betty is trying to say is yes, she finds him devilishly handsome and she would like to have his babies," Kevin said helpfully wrapping his arm around Betty, who elbowed him in the stomach and Veronica giggled.
"If you want to spend more time with him, all you have to do is ask," Veronica said cheekily. "We can have so many more sleepovers at my place."
"Oh can we please?" Kevin asked.
"Of course we can, Jug's going to be home a lot more this year because of school," Veronica told them. "He wants to do well in the SAT's just in case Football isn't enough."
"He's one of our two best players," Kevin said shaking his head in disbelief, Jughead and Archie were the best players and both of them were definitely getting scouted to play for whichever school they wanted, most probably together as well because of how well they play off each other. "Smart and athletic, straight people are so lucky."
"It's not my fault he's straight," Betty said throwing her hands up when Kevin turned to glare at her.
Veronica squealed as she was picked up into a bear hug and spun around, she opened her eyes to find Reggie out of his football uniform and ready to go to Pop's.
"Did you guys see me out there? I was amazing," Reggie said putting Veronica down, bumping fists with Kevin in front of him and holding the arm closest to Betty out to hug her.
"You were, we're so proud," Betty exclaimed hugging him, her eye catching Archie who had just walked out of the change rooms and stopped when he heard Veronica's squeal, his eyes narrowing at Reggie's hand that was still resting on Veronica's hip. Archie looked up and caught Betty watching him, shook his head quickly, Betty didn't know if he was shaking his head at himself or at her before walking off with Jughead who narrowed his eyes slightly at the scene as he adjusted his crown beanie but didn't say anything.
"Ready to go?" Kevin asked looking at Betty curiously and Betty nodded only realizing then that she missed a chunk of the conversation between her friends.
"Yeah sorry," Betty said shaking her head and Kevin smirked. "Let's go."
"Jughead got you distracted?" Kevin asked wiggling his eyebrows and Reggie looked at her confused and Betty shook her head. "Just wait till I tell you what happened."
"Do I want to know?" Reggie asked her and Betty just shook her head no. "Well Jughead looks pretty cosy with Harper so I wouldn't get your hopes up."
"Do not bring her hopes down, Jughead's just using Harper as a rebound," Kevin said with a roll of his eyes turning to Veronica who was watching them discuss her brother, completely amused. "Right V."
"Yeah," Veronica said casually, it's not like that was a secret. "Even Harper knows it, she's hoping for more but Jug's not looking for a relationship, same with Archie and Ginger, that's why I keep calling them groupies."
"And I am not getting my hopes up, Kevin is just being Kevin," Betty said glaring at her friend and then looking at the retreating figures of Jughead, Archie, Harper and Ginger. "Don't we all have crushes on the hot football players?"
"That's what I'm banking on," Reggie said flexing his muscles making them all laugh, the irritation in his voice from earlier, gone. "If Kevin wants to tease you, just bring up Moose, it'll shut him right up," he whispered just to Betty.
"Why yes Kevin Keller, we didn't talk about your crush yet," Betty said clearing her throat and turning on Kevin, who went pale at the turn of the conversation. "What is happening with you and Moose?"
"Yeah Kev," Veronica agreed turning to him too, as Reggie chuckled to himself. "After B and I caught you two making out under the bleachers we thought there would have been some sort of announcement coming."
"He's still very much in the closet," Kevin said with a sigh. "And he's asked Midge out."
"Oh she's so sweet," Betty said realizing belatedly that she probably shouldn't have said that. "Sorry."
"Yes she is so sweet, and she also said yes," Kevin said dejectedly, Betty and Veronica shared a look, they had a new mission, get Kevin a guy. "Can we get back to 'Ronnie' and Archie please?"
"Urg, that nickname is the worst," Veronica complained. "And no we cannot because there is nothing there Kev."
"Veronica and Archie?" Reggie asked giving Veronica an over exaggerated heartbroken look and she rolled her eyes.
"Oh buddy, do I have things to tell you," Kevin said linking their arms and pulling him to the car.
"Boys," Veronica muttered with a sigh, hooking her arm with Betty's as they followed.
"V, you have had a crush on Archie since we were in diapers, you followed him everywhere, yes I know you said you didn't have a crush on him anymore but who are you kidding," Betty said with a giggle when Veronica went to protest. "What if he likes you likes you?"
"Archie?" Veronica asked as if she had never considered that as a possibility. "I would jump at an opportunity to be anything with Archie Andrews but trust me when I say that he's always been like that with me, I'll always be his best friends little sister, he's not interested in anything more."
A/N : Its been almost a month since I've posted, its been a crazy month and since there was no Game of Thrones this week, I had an hour and a half to edit lol I hope you guys enjoyed the start of this story, it looks like it's going to be a really long one
I have not watched the last few episodes of Riverdale yet, I have been spoiled, I follow the fan accounts on instagram for all the Varchie goodness and omg it looks like they have the most amazing scenes in the finale! I will probably catch up this weekend but I cannot bring myself to watch Luke Perry's final episode and so I cannot move forward
Anyway, I don't have any other ramblings today, I hope you enjoyed this chapter, I will try my hardest to be quicker with the next one
Please review, until next time (^^,)